


His Blood Sparks Purple

by Ethanawriter



Series: Purple Lightning AU [4]
Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV), Spider-Man - All Media Types, The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Assassin Peter Parker, BAMF Peter Parker, Hydra Peter Parker, M/M, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Peter Parker is a Little Shit, Protective Natasha Romanov, Sarcastic Peter Parker
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-31
Updated: 2020-12-31
Packaged: 2021-03-09 21:55:10
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,010
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27813367
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ethanawriter/pseuds/Ethanawriter
Summary: Ethan Eise is a tired-out SHIELD agent in desperate need of relief. He's never been very fond of his job, and he's ready to retire at 34. However, as Ethan is assigned to interrogate a well-known and dangerous HYDRA assassin, he finds himself wrapped up in the enigma that is the Carmine Spider.
Relationships: Peter Parker/Original Character(s)
Series: Purple Lightning AU [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1987780
Comments: 2
Kudos: 6





	His Blood Sparks Purple

**Author's Note:**

> Woooo boy, here we go again!  
> Taking a different approach on Ethan's and Peter's relationship, of which I was briefly inspired by The Silence of the Lambs.  
> And if you've ever seen that movie... it gets.... dark  
> It'll be slow-burn darkness, something that I want to build over time in the story, but things start out decently nice.  
> Peter is real FUCKED up thanks to HYDRA, but this story does have a happy ending! So yay!!  
> I'll try to write in specific chapter warning when necessary:)

Ethan Eise adjusted the collar of his shirt as the elevator descended. 

Standing in the cold recluse that was the Avenger's Compound elevator, he thought back to the information and case files he had scanned viciously for his job today.

Recently, during a HYDRA raid, an agent had been secured, one referred to as the ASSET SPIDER. Recordings of agents screaming to 'secure the asset' had been dug up, shown to SHEILD for review, Ethan being one of the agents shown.

The 'asset' was not, or at least this particular instance, James "Bucky" Barnes, but instead, a thirty-some-year-old, five-ten, causation male, with brown hair and eyes.

The facial description was only identified after the agent had been subdued and taken in for questioning by the Avengers.

Specifically known as the Carmine Spider, with his real name unknown.

His identity was yet to be determined.

Even after multiple blood tests, it was determined that the Carmine Spider must have been raised as a HYDRA agent from birth, with parents who had long been a part of HYDRA.

The paternity test hadn't been able to ping anyone, not a mother nor father, so the Carmine Spider was suspected to have a long linage of HYDRA agents.

It wasn't surprising in the least, as it seemed a vast majority of agents rarely had recorded family outside of HYDRA.

Apparently, the Carmine Spider was HYDRA's new pride and joy.

After Sergent Barnes successfully defected, the Carmine Spider began to appear, gaining praise from the captured HYDRA agents when questioned.

The Carmine Spider had an estimated kill count of three hundred and twenty-six, though only the Carmine Spider would know for sure.

Then again, after reading Sergent Barnes' case file, it was quite likely that the Carmine Spider could remember any of his kills.

If HYDRA used the mind-wipe chair on the Carmine Spider, then there was a chance the Carmine Spider would be useless for information.

Ethan had seen pictures of the Carmine Spider's face by now, however, he hadn't liked the state it was in at the time.

The Carmine Spider's face was battered and bloodied from his fight with the Avengers in the photos. 

Ethan had tried not to get too upset at that, and he had taken satisfaction in the injuries that the Carmine Spider had bestowed upon the Avengers in retaliation.

You see, while Ethan was far from pro-HYDRA, he still wasn't pro-SHIELD nor pro-Avengers.

The deaths that the Avengers and SHIELD caused were very much equal to the deaths that HYDRA caused, hell, their kill count might even be higher.

The only reason Ethan even agreed to work with SHIELD in the first place, was because he was a child with nowhere else to go.

He knew that if HYDRA had approached him when he had been fifteen, homeless, hungry, and terrified with the same ideals, he would have said yes.

Preying on the weak and using them as scapegoats and pawns, killing those who felt that they might be wrong, turning children into weapons, dissecting and restaining those who could be a threat, these were accurate descriptions of both HYDRA and SHIELD.

However, here Ethan was, standing outside of the interrogation room, knocking gently for the Avengers inside to let him in.

When the door slid open, Ethan stepped inside, ignoring the glares of the Avengers.

It was a widely known fact that a vast majority of the Avengers had a disdain for most SHIELD agents, and Ethan could respect that.

After all, he held the same disdain for them, so it would be hypocritical of him to be annoyed.

Instead, he motioned to the one-way wall, out to the agent sitting in the adjoining room, and asked "What have you gotten so far from the agent?"

Ethan's tone was calm, bordering on disinterested, and he knew some of the Avengers might interpret that as Ethan being cocky, however, Ethan couldn't find it in him to care.

He instead observed the man on the other side of the wall, who perked up slightly at Ethan's words.

It was almost like he could hear them.

Huh.

"Right to the point eh? Yeah, HYDRA-boy over there has decided to be difficult. The guy hasn't given us anything, so anything you could get out of him would be helpful." Tony Stark answered.

Ethan nodded.

"Of course Mr.Stark. Thank you for your patience up to this point. If you have any other information, please share it now, if not, I'll be taking a turn with the agent."

"Do you know why SHIELD's being so passive with this one?" Natasha Romanoff asked.

Her voice seemed cold, as though she couldn't wait for a turn to break the man.

Ethan remembered reading about Clint Barton it cutting very close in the HYDRA raid, due to the Carmine Spider's efforts.

"I apologize for any inconvenience Miss Romanoff, but we need to be careful with the Carmine Spider. Hurting the agent is the last thing SHIELD wants. After what happened with Sergent Barnes, we want to try and help as an agent if there is even a sliver of a chance we can help them at a better life. No matter your personal thoughts on the matter, at the end of the day, the Carmine Spider is still a person worthy of respect, like you and me."

Okay, so the vast majority of that was Ethan's beliefs, not SHIELD's, but then again, Ethan often time didn't follow SHIELD procedures to a tee anyhow.

"Respect?!" Captain Roger's snapped.

_ Oh boy. _

Ethan could really do without the lecture, but he knew better than to just walk out the door.

The man internally sighed as he prepared for the Captain to air out his grievances onto Ethan.

It was time's like this that Ethan wished his first mission had taken out his hearing, instead of giving him horrible burn scars.

"That man took out and killed six SHIELD agents, along with severely injuring multiple of the team, almost killing Clint!"

_ You and your precious team killed over thirty-seven HYDRA agents, many of whom just happened to be scientists, janitors, lab assistants, and had tried to run. _

"Clint has a family! A family that needed their father to come home safe!"

_ So did the sixteen out of the twenty-three dead agents we managed to identify. Families that are now going in for questioning. What makes Agent Barton's family so important? Other than the emotional attachment you've developed for them. _

"And think you  ** dare  ** to think that kind of person deserves respect?! Murders do not deserve respect! Villians do not deserve respect!!" The Captain finished with a petulant stomp of his foot.

_ Every single person in this room has killed before.  _

"Yes, Captain Rogers. I apologize for coming off as inconsiderate."

Ethan turned to look to Miss Romanoff. 

"I wish Clint and the rest of the team a good recovery."

With that, Ethan left the room and gently opened the door to the Carmine Spider's waiting figure.

The Carmine Spider just watched Ethan as he set down the case he had been carrying, opened it, and pulled out an antiseptic wipe. 

The Carmine Spider watched Ethan with a bit more interest as he leaned forward and wiped at the Carmine Spider blood-covered face.

After a thorough, but gentle cleaning of the Carmine Spider's face, arms, and cuffed hands, Ethan inspected the Carmine Spider for any major injuries that needed immediate attention, but only found a few small cuts that he placed band-aids on.

Ethan mentally added super-healing to the Carmine Spider's list of abilities.

Once Ethan felt that he had been through enough, he put the wipe back in the case, closing it and setting it aside for now.

Ethan sat back down and placed his hand flat on the table, as a way to show the Carmine Spider he was not a threat before he began to speak.

"Hello. My name is Agent Eise, he/him pronouns, and I'd like to talk to you a bit. Would that be okay?"

After a moment of silence, the Carmine Spider snorted.

"Okay, not the strangest question I've heard today. But sure go ahead, however, last time I checked a 'talk' means a conversation and you asking me questions that I just don't answer while staring off into space doesn't constitute as such."

Ethan chuckled a bit.

"No, no I suppose it doesn't, huh? Would you like to have a conversation instead? I can save the questioning for another day instead."

Ethan was genuine with that offer.

He'd much rather ramble on about engineering for the hour he was scheduled to stay here for, instead of questioning the agent.

Maybe if he could get the Carmine Spider to open up a bit, the agent's stiff posture would change it to something softer, something less guarded, and Ethan could use that to his advantage.

SHIELD knew well of Ethan's interrogation tactics that they would give him plenty of time, even with the smallest information.

Ethan's mind was already whirling with ideas in the case of an escape attempt.

High frequencies, similar to that of dog whistles could be an effective way of overloading the agent's scenes and subdue him with minimal damage to the Carmine Spider.

And with the Carmine Spider's quick healing, it wouldn't be too bad a time for the agent.

Ethan hypothesizes that the Carmine Spider must have a fast metabolism like Captain Rodgers to heal that fast, so as long as the Carmine Spider is fed and well-rested, he would heal without feeling too much pain.

The Carmine Spider leaned on the table a bit, with an amused smirk on his lips.

"You shouldn't make promises you can't keep. Plus, I don't like liars,  _ Eise _ ."

The Carmine Spider gave Ethan a shark-like grin, but Ethan only watched him in faux boredom.

"I wasn't lying Carmine Spider. I only have an hour before I'm out of here and on to my next mission, I'm very much willing to talk about anything right now."

The Carmine Spider paused, then shrugged.

"Okay. Prove it. You said you have an hour, let's talk Eise."

Ethan was happy to oblige.

For the next hour, Ethan spoke about his projects in engineering, with the Carmine Spider keeping up with Ethan's ramblings and giving input.

As the hour flew by, eventually the Carmine Spider was taking the lead of the conversation, and even started talking about some of his own projects.

Once or twice, the Carmine Spider began talking about HYDRA projects, before realizing what he was doing and cutting himself off.

Ethan just ran with it though, redirecting the conversation and taking the reins, until the Carmine Spider felt comfortable enough to join back in.

By the time the hour was up, the Carmine Spider seemed much more relaxed, and Ethan had gotten a good deal of information about the Carmine Spider. 

"Excuse me Agent Eise, your hour of time is up. Boss has asked for you to quote 'stop wasting precious air in my compound and go report back to SHIELD like a good lap dog.'" FRIDAY informed them.

Ethan nodded.

"Thank you, Miss Friday. Could you inform Doctor Stark I appreciate the time he has given me? I'll be on my way now."

"Yes, Agent Eise."

Nodding toward the ceiling, Ethan turned back to the Carmine Spider.

"Thank you for your time Carmine Spider. And for the engineering talk, it's been a while since I found someone who cares or has enough time to ramble on about engineering for even a minute, though I wish it was under different pretenses."

the Carmine Spider laughed.

"That's the understatement of the year. You seem intelligent, it's a shame you work for SHIELD and not HYDRA. You would have been a great asset, maybe even gotten a better job than field agent."

Ethan smiled.

"A tempting offer, but no thank you. I'll stick to what I do best, and you can do the same if you wish." 

Ethan opened the door.

"See you later Carmine Spider."

**Author's Note:**

> Next update on 2/28/21


End file.
